回顾|第三世界當代思想系列演講I：Aaron Kamugisha @ 2016

回顾|第三世界當代思想系列演講I：Aaron Kamugisha
Contemporary Third World Thought Lecture Series I: Aaron Kamugisha was held.

做為本次系列演講的第一場，Kamugisha教授首先簡述他個人的知識軌跡，講述他如何發現知識上的去殖民是所有加勒比海知識份子面對的重要議題，而要開始這麼做，就必須從挖掘在地思想資源開始。這也是為何他會以這次的題目展開系列演講。

如同演講標題所示，他首先以第一篇文本，由1805年海地反殖民革命時期關鍵人物之一的Jean Jacques Dessalines所寫的〈不解放吾寧死，眾呼〉（Liberty or Death, Proclamation）說明海地革命的重要意義在於這不是一場中產階級革命，而是代表著一段「不可想像」的歷史的革命，意思是，在這個曾經是世上最獲利豐厚的殖民地上被奴役的人民們，起來成功反抗當時世界上最強大的殖民勢力。在這篇文章中， Dessalines描述了受奴役者的悲慘狀況，並呼籲要終結奴隸制度，這點在革命成功之後訂立的海地憲法中得到實現。

在歷史再往後推移，下一個時期殖民地的知識份子則面臨Aimé Césaire所寫的〈殖民主義探討〉（Discourse on Colonialism）這篇文章中需要思考的議題。在這篇文章中，Aimé Césaire對殖民主義的形成與特質都提出非常具有開創性的見解，他精闢分析殖民與文明這兩個概念之間的關係、殖民主義與法西斯主義之間的關係，以及殖民主義的神話等，這些都對後來的知識份子產生許多啟發，包括第三篇文本的作者，也就是Franz Fanon。

Kamugisha教授把〈種族主義與文化〉（Racism and Culture）這篇文章放回Fanon的知識脈絡，認為它是標示著從《白皮膚，黑面具》（1952）到《大地上的受苦者》（1961）之間重要轉折的作品，他重點提出文章中的關鍵論點，包括種族主義論述如何從生物上的轉到文化上的，如何透過文化來運作與強化，以及對納粹與殖民的記憶如何「深深改動了這個問題以及探討它的方式。Fanon也精確描繪了種族之間的動態心理張力以及他的核心關切，也就是種族主義和壓迫之間的關係。在第四篇文章〈墾殖莊園社會：加勒比海社會理論初探〉（Plantation Society: Toward a General Theory of Caribbean Society）中，作者George Beckford致力於透過被殖民經驗來描繪加勒比海社會的關鍵特質。透過主張「傳統墾殖莊園是一種徹底的經濟建制」同時也是「徹底的社會建制」，Beckford對於墾殖莊園的形成、發展、運作等種種面向提出詳細說明。儘管他的有些論點仍有爭議性，但墾殖莊園仍是一個能讓我們捕捉殖民對加勒比海社會的影響與效應的有效出發點，未來能夠對這個地區做出更具深度的分析。

As the first lecture of three, Dr. Kamugisha first took us through his intellectual trajectory, about how he had found the issue of intellectual decolonization an important task confronting Caribbean scholars, and to do that, one must first goes back to intellectual resources born in the Caribbean area, which lead to the lecture this time.

As indicated by the title, he first introduce the article “Liberty or Death, Proclamation” by Jean Jacques Dessalines, a key figure in the 1805 Haiti revolution against colonialism. The revolution is not a bourgeoisie revolution, but the one representing an “unthinkable” history, that is, slaved people on the once most prosperous colony defeated the strongest forces/colonizers in the world at that time. Dessalines in the article depicted the dire situation of slavery, and call for a termination and liberation of all slaves – a task realized in the Haiti Constitution.

After the preliminary task was done, there comes the second text “Discourse on Colonialism” by Aimé Césaire, in which he made ground-breaking observation on the features and characteristics of colonialism. His acute analysis of the notion of colonialization and civilization, the relation between colonialism and fascism, as well as the myth of colonialization have been inspiring for many of the thinkers, including Franz Fanon, his student and the author of the next text “Racism and Culture.”

By situation this essay as the transforming conjuncture for Fanon between Black Skin, White Masks (1952) and The Wretched of the Earth (1961), Dr. Kamugisha highlighted Fanon’s key arguments in the essay, including how racism has moved from a biological racism to a cultural one, and is culturally functioned and enforced, and how the memory of Nazism and colonization has “deeply modified the problem and the manner of approaching it.” Fanon depicted the psycho-dynamic of the race, and his key concern about the relation between racism and oppression. In the fourth text, “Plantation Society: Toward a General Theory of Caribbean Society,” George Beckford endeavor to delineate the key features of Caribbean society through the experience of being colonized. By stating that “the traditional plantation is a total economic institution,” as well as “a total social institution,” Beckford provided detailed analysis of the formation, development, function and so on of the plantation as an institution. Albeit some of his arguments remain controversial, the issue of plantation indeed provide a solid point of departure to grasp the impact and effect of colonization on Caribbean society for more in-depth analysis of this area.

Kamugisha教授的第二場演講，主要循五位加勒比海學者著作，追探獨立運動之後，加勒比海（英語系）國家的政治、社會發展。出身圭亞那的歷史學者Walter Rodney，生前亦是活躍的政治、社會運動人士。他於1970年代寫成‘Contemporary Political Trends in the English-Speaking Caribbean’，悲嘆小布爾喬亞階級主宰英語系加勒比海諸國政治、社會情勢；認為小布爾喬亞與底層勞動階級之間日益擴大、加深的隔閡，不僅阻卻政治民主，也妨礙了各國的經濟成長。Lucille Mathurin-Mair的作品 ‘Reluctant Matriarchs’亦寫於70年代。該文析論其時於亞買加，三分之一以上家庭由單身女性隻手操持的現象，駁斥黑種女戶長既權威、且強悍的刻板印象。相反地，由於匱缺經濟、社會資源，單身黑種女戶長承負政經、性別雙重弱勢，反而容易受制國家機器或新興的父權家庭機制。Percy Hintzen藉‘Race and Creole Ethnicity in the Caribbean’討論「白種優勢」。他認為，獨立運動之後，亞洲（比方中國）、中東（比方敘利亞和黎巴嫩）移民，以及在地原住民逐步融入加勒比海社會，調整了原來以歐非對立為基石的人種階序，代之以黑白對立的膚色階序。新階序機制對「白皮膚」的尊崇沾染加勒比海民族運動，致使後者難能有效挑戰北大西洋諸國的政經、文化強權。Obika Gray在‘Predation Politics and the Political Impasse in Jamaica’裡，描繪亞買加政治局勢為「弱肉強食」。Kamugisha延伸說明Gray的觀察，以為階級鬥爭激烈，加以毒品、武器交易猖獗，使加勒比海諸國飽受社會暴力之苦。然政治暴力氾濫又與加勒比海「小國寡民」的政治現實相關。小選區裡，選舉成敗僅取決於十數張選票，為求勝選，候選人/政客對選民或者威脅，或者利誘。候選人/政客與選民之間綿密的人際往來，既是加勒比海民主政治的基礎，也是社會控制的重要環節。最後，Kamala Kempadoo以 ‘Theorizing Sexual Relations in the Caribbean’ 一文批判加勒比海「性觀光」產業。她以為，「性觀光」以種族主義為基底，是「性觀光客」消費加勒比海住民身體（不論男女），借種族刻板印象建構、投射性想像，以重新肯認自我種族、文化優越的不公道行徑。

In his second lecture, Dr. Kamugisha focused on 5 Caribbean writers, whose seminal work reflects diverse aspects of post-independence Caribbean social and political thought. The prominent Guyanese historian, political activist and scholar Walter Rodney laments in ‘Contemporary Political Trends in the English-Speaking Caribbean’ petty bourgeoisie domination throughout post-independence Anglophone Caribbean countries. Profoundly influenced by and involved in the development of pan-African socialism, Rodney, who wrote the article in the 1970s, argues the increased gap between the petty bourgeoisie and the working people thwarted not only political democracy but also economic growth in those countries. Lucille Mathurin-Mair’s ‘Reluctant Matriarchs’, written as well in the ‘70s, contests the stereotypical assumption of ‘authoritative’ black matriarchs. She contends instead that although one-third of Jamaica’s adult women headed their households in the ‘70s, these were sexually and economically vulnerable single women who might easily fall prey to the new paterfamilias and the state just because they lacked control of relevant social resources. As new diasporic communities with origins in Asia (i.e. China), the Middle East (i.e. Syria and Lebanon), and in the indigenous population of the region have become immersed into Caribbean reality, Percy Hintzen in ‘Race and Creole Ethnicity in the Caribbean’ observes that a White-Black polarity based on skin color has replaced Europe and Africa at opposite ends of the Creole continuum. Unfortunately, according to Hintzen, white supremacy remains in this post-colonial situation imposed upon Caribbean nationalism to hinder challenges to North Atlantic power. Obika Gray’s ‘Predation Politics and the Political Impasse in Jamaica’ concerns the prevalence of violence, which Dr. Kamugisha believes has featured prominently in Jamaican/Caribbean politics as a result of class struggle, drug problems and irregulate arm trade. To elaborate on the issue, Dr. Kamugisha foregrounded the entanglement of what he termed ‘popular democratic culture’ with the so-called ‘social control’. In Caribbean countries that tend to be territorially tiny, he said, the results of elections are usually determined by as less as dozens of votes. Under the circumstances, either candidates are pressurised to serve their constituencies carefully (with or without social justice being fulfilled), or voters get constantly coerced into supporting particular politicians. Lastly, Kamala Kempadoo’s ‘Theorizing Sexual Relations in the Caribbean’ problematises ‘sex tourism’ in the Caribbean as a means through which the tourist (male or female) constructs Caribbean men and women as racialised sexual subjects/objects to attain a sense of control over his or her sexuality while reassuring (the tourist) himself or herself of racial and/or cultural privilege.

系列演講的最終場，Kamugisha教授析論亞買加作者Sylvia Wynter長達九百頁、從未正式出版的巨著《黑人蛻變論》。該書巨細靡遺繪述黑（種）人早期被殖民、近期受壓抑的漫長歷史經驗。循此脈絡，Wynter探究種族主義的發展，認為其之於近現代社會的具體價值，遠超出經濟剝削之所得，而深入社會曁心理建構。此等建構不僅見於奴役經濟裡，身心異化的黑種奴工；更廣泛體現於種族主義對意識、慾望的宰制。宰制的結果趨迫一切種族個體/身體投向對（西方）中產階級生存形式的追求，廣義的「人」或「人性」，也因此片面地爲（社會層序中最具權力資源的）白種中產階級男性所定義。為「在西方男性典型之後/外，（重新）追尋人性（的定義）」（Kamugisha語），Wynter於是主張「慾望的去殖民」，做為有色人種重寫人性論、打造我們生活的世界成一嶄新（身體）經驗的基礎。

Dr. Kamugisha’s 3rd and final lecture brought the audience’s attention to the Jamaican writer Sylvia Wynter and her over 900 page long unpublished manuscript Black Metamorphosis. Described by Kamugisha as ‘the quest of the human after Western man’, the project Wynter had pursued with Black Metamorphosis concerns at once the delineation of ‘the Black experience’ (first as the colonised or the slave, and later as the dominated, the to-be-decolonised), the analysis of racism rather as a social purpose in itself than a means of economic exploitation, and the reinvention of the very concept of ‘the human’, which ‘in the world we live in’ remains very limitedly equated with the concept/existence of middle-class white men. A social mechanism, Kamugisha thus read Wynter, racism operates not merely to abuse colored bodies and consequentially to condemn the colored races to alienation. But more significantly it functions to colonise consciousness and to regularise desires, so (most of) those who exist feel impelled to (western) bourgeoisie form. To reformulate the theory of the human, and to restructure the world as ‘a new experience’, Wynter therefore calls on the colored to decolonise/radicalise desires, wherein, as Kamugisha understands it, lies the key to the decolonisation of consciousness and to the legitimacy of the colonised/colored body.